How to Say ‘Excuse me.’ in Japanese
すみません。
sumi mase n
[soo-mee mah-seh]
🇯🇵 In Japan: [すみません。] is the standard soft opener when you need to complain to a neighbor. It sounds much gentler than starting with the problem directly.
Phrase Breakdown
すみ
sumi
[soo-mee]
excuse me; I'm sorry
A polite opener to get someone’s attention or to apologize lightly before making a request (useful when speaking to neighbors).
すみません、夜は音楽の音を少し下げていただけますか。
Excuse me, could you turn the music down a little at night?
ませ
mase
[mah-seh]
(part of) polite negative / polite phrasing
This is part of 「すみません」. It helps make the phrase polite; you don’t use 「ませ」 by itself in normal speech.
すみません、もう少し静かにしていただけますか。
Excuse me, could you be a little quieter?
ん
n
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